I am a list maker…even in retirement from my secular work. For me, what doesn’t get listed, doesn’t get done. It is also very rewarding for me to check that item off the list when it is accomplished. The list has a progression of priorities. One task cannot happen until another task is completed. And so life goes with my lists guiding my behavior and productivity.
As I journal each morning in my conversational prayer with God, the Father, His Spirit guides me to make another list that helps me to mature and grow in Him. I am convicted of some of those “fruits of the Spirit” that I have not tended to or cultivated, have ignored or left undone. His Holy Spirit redirects my thoughts and helps me form a list of tasks that will help me improve my behavior. “Keep a close check on yourself”, writes Paul to Timothy. For me, that means to make a spiritual checklist that keeps me in close contact with the will and purpose of our Father, God and helps me to grow closer to Him.
We can do nothing of significance without God. I am convinced that He guides us to all things that are good for our growth and aid our learning about Him and how He works. Paul also gives Timothy sound advice about how to treat those whom God has called to lead with character traits with another list of how to lead. This list still applies to us today. The theme of this episode seems to be; Know God, Know Yourself, Know The Message, Know Your Audience. Our deeds, good and bad, will be evident. Be driven by God’s love in us.
1 Timothy 5, The Message
17-18 Give a bonus to leaders who do a good job, especially the ones who work hard at preaching and teaching. Scripture tells us, “Don’t muzzle a working ox” and “A worker deserves his pay.”
19 Don’t listen to a complaint against a leader that isn’t backed up by two or three responsible witnesses.
20 If anyone falls into sin, call that person on the carpet. Those who are inclined that way will know right off they can’t get by with it.
21-23 God and Jesus and angels all back me up in these instructions. Carry them out without favoritism, without taking sides. Don’t appoint people to church leadership positions too hastily. If a person is involved in some serious sins, you don’t want to become an unwitting accomplice. In any event, keep a close check on yourself. And don’t worry too much about what the critics will say. Go ahead and drink a little wine, for instance; it’s good for your digestion, good medicine for what ails you.
24-25 The sins of some people are blatant and march them right into court. The sins of others don’t show up until much later. The same with good deeds. Some you see right off, but none are hidden forever.
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLE #6: Keep a Close Check on Yourself
Leadership Characteristics –
–Fully rely on God. Trust Him with all you are and all you have. We are His. All we have is His.
–Ask God “if there is anything offensive to you, cleanse me.” as the Psalmist prayed.
–Repent with a heart and mind not wanting to return to the old life.
–Look full into the face of Jesus, our Master, Lord and Savior with laser focus so we know what direction to take next.
–“Keep a close check on yourself.” Avoid, “he did it, I can, too” or “my sin is not as bad as his sin” or “everybody’s doing it” mentality.
–Ask God for wisdom, insight and understanding.
–Allow God’s transformation to continue in our lives.
–Ask God to make your lists of to BE and to DO. HE will prioritize your lists in ways you cannot imagine! Where He guides, He provides help all along the journey.
–Do all in a Spirit of love for God and others.
–Care enough to confront others with God’s love and concern for their spiritual well-being and growth.
WarningThe things on our spiritual check list can never be crossed off because we’ll be working on them our whole lives. By listing we are reminding ourselves of what we need to work on to “keep a close check” on our lives. It is only by The Atonement of Jesus Christ can we accomplish anything of eternal significance.
Dear Heavenly Father, You have convinced me that we must do spiritual “business” with You each day to improve our being in You. Thank you for helping us on this journey. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit that points out things in our behavior that could cause us to crash…before crashing. Thank you for always being with us, guiding and directing, loving and protecting and challenging us to grow and bear Fruit. Continue to transform me. Transform your church. Transform the world through your church. In Jesus Name, Amen
“But if we wait expectantly for things we have never seen, then we hope with true perseverance and eager anticipation.” Romans 8:25 The Voice
I am discovering, (although slowly), that hope and wait go together like pie and ice cream! You can’t have one without the other! Wait includes time for our expectations to rise for what we know God will do. We just don’t know what or how He will do it! Hope builds in the wait as we trust God to do what is best for us no matter the circumstances on our current journey. God always comes through on our behalf through trials and tests, at just the right time, as a testimony of His glorious work in us as we stand firm in our faith–all so that others will see His works in us—not for our glory but for His!
Remember the Lazarus story? (Read the whole story in John 11) Lazarus, a very good friend, as were his sisters, Martha and Mary, to Jesus. Jesus used to stay at his house when in the area. Martha served while Mary sat at his feet, hanging on every word Jesus spoke. While Jesus was away to “seek and to save the lost and heal the sick”, Lazarus fell gravely ill. Jesus was summoned to come heal him before death; but He chose to wait. Jesus stayed where he was for two more days instead of going right away. He explained that the illness would bring glory to God. Why didn’t he drop everything in ministry to go heal his dear friend? Let us repeat what Jesus said to his concerned disciples with him—”Waiting will bring glory to God.”
Did the disciples fully understand? —probably not. But we know from reading through the gospels that Jesus didn’t say or do anything powerfully significant without first consulting His Father in heaven—as we should.
“I only do and say what my Father tells me.”
As it turned out, Lazareth died before Jesus arrived. Mary and Martha grieved for their brother deeply. In their grief, Marha looked at Jesus and said, “my brother would not have died if you would have been here”. (Ouch) Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life”. Did she understand? Not completely. She knew all who believed would be with God in heaven someday; but she didn’t know the full story—yet—of Jesus redeeming death and God’s resurrection of Jesus to life for eternity! Her only thought was of her brother who had died.
Mary, in her grief, just sobbed at Jesus’ feet. Seeing their sorrow and the weeping crowd, Jesus was deeply moved and cried. This forms the shortest verse in the Bible: “Jesus wept”. (John 11:35)
Jesus then went to work on behalf of this family but mainly for the purpose to declare the power and glory of God for all to see! Jesus went to the tomb and ordered the stone in front be rolled away. (A sign of things to come for his resurrection and life!) Martha warned that after 4 days, the smell would be bad. But Jesus was not concerned about the physical—only the spiritual renewal of his dear friends and the crowd who watched—as the glory of God provided the miracle of life! Remember what Jesus said days earlier? “Waiting will bring glory to God.”
Jesus prayed out loud to God for all to hear so they would know that what was about to happen would be the glorious, miraculous work of God. Then, in hopeful expectation, Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!”
Lazarus walked out of the tomb, still wrapped in strips of linen burial cloth. Jesus told the people to take off the grave clothes and let him go! No longer bound by the things of this world, Lazarus was free to walk with Jesus once more on earth. Mary and Martha turned their grief into joy, praising God for resurrecting their brother. We can almost hear Martha order, “Get out the funeral casseroles and cakes and let the party of life begin!”
Many of the witnesses came to believe in Jesus after seeing this miracle. At the same time, it made the religious leaders angry and anxious, leading them to plot against Jesus’s life. The miracle also prompted the chief priests and Pharisees to plot to kill Lazarus as well, because he was living proof of Jesus’s power as the proclaimed Son of God!
There was no denying it—God’s was in control. God never gave up His authority but demonstrated His power and glory through the resurrection of Lazarus—and later Jesus, His Son. All in God’s perfect timing. There is glory in the wait when God directs our path.
Psalm 131, The Message
A song of ascents. Of David.
God, I’m not trying to rule the roost, I don’t want to be king of the mountain. I haven’t meddled where I have no business or fantasized grandiose plans.
2 I’ve kept my feet on the ground, I’ve cultivated a quiet heart. Like a baby content in its mother’s arms, my soul is a baby content.
3 Wait, Israel, for God. Wait with hope. Hope now; hope always!
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Prayerfully ponder; (Take a minute or two)
Do I wait with glorious expectation for what God will do in and through me?
Hope, waiting for the glorious expectation for God to act begins with the surrender of our will while seeking His “pleasing and perfect will.” Hope with wait includes patience for His timing in all things, being still before the Lord in communion with Him, asking for His wisdom, along with a great deal of focused listening for Him. (Romans 12 helps us)
The hope I sought used to include those things I asked God for and knew He could make happen if it was in His will. But now in this season of my life, hope is connected strongly to peace—the peace and contentment I feel when I am just quiet and still before Him, knowing with full trust that God is sitting right here with me as I listen, waiting with expectant hope for Him. I adore my Lord. I adore watching Him work in all His glory all around and in me. I love to give Him all the thanksgiving He deserves from a humbled grateful heart. But my words are just not enough.
Like David sings, my heart also sings with the same content—like a child wrapped in her mother’s arms sitting on her lap. I hope and pray to see God’s glory at work daily and He answers in ways that I never dreamed! God does it over and over because it is His glorious power I love to see all around me. Most days, I cannot keep up with my consistent words of thanks and praise to equal His continuous glorious blessings of goodness that I see at work in and all around us!
There is no one like our God!
Our God is powerful yet personal. He created us to be in an intimate, personal, loving, growing relationship with Him. What I described above is how I grew to love Him more and more each day. He never gave up on me and I love being with Him.
And guess what—it’s not must me!Everyone who calls on His Name will not only be saved for eternity but grows exponentially in an incredibly intimate loving relationship with the God of all Creation! We stand in a healthy awe and fear of our Lord for all He has done, is doing and will do in our hope-filled lives as we wait expectantly!
ICYMI, Hope is associated closely withthe action of wait. In the past, my waits seemed longer for me because I thought it was an exercise in doing nothing. When I was much younger, working at full speed, giving God all I had, wanting tasks to be done yesterday so others could know Him more today, the word wait was hard to swallow. Over the years, I had to learn the value of hope with wait. Now, with the powerful guidance of His Holy Spirit along with the same commitment to tell His story of redemption, the waits are growing sweeter as time goes by. I learned to relax and let God.
Wait Time of being still in quiet adoration of my Lord, I fully realized the depth of the old hymn of my parents and grandparents; “And He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His own…” for I know Whom I have believed and I know fully that God walks with me and does indeed talk with me all day long. Sometimes I wake to the sound of His still small voice, whispering the solution of a problem or a blessed plan for resolution. Sometimes God just reminds me to rejoice in the blessings He has already provided. “…And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.”
There is no one like our God!
My heart contently wonders what is on the heart of God about all that concerns me about my family, friends, and those who enjoy working with the enemy. So, I resolutely pray while He works. This is the peace of Christ living in all who believe, trust, hope, wait, and obey.
Lord,
Thank you for David’s song that reminds us of the song you put in our hearts. Thank you for cleansing our hearts, removing all that does not belong, renewing our minds, helping us to wait with expectant hope, refreshing our souls with your new mercies for today, all while restoring the joy of your salvation at work within us. What a mighty God you are!
The background of Psalm 130 reminds us that God who was at the beginning, is now, and always will be, created each one of us. He is the One and Only God we seek for forgiveness of our sins. We know from Genesis, that God began with the creation of Adam and Eve. Other humans were created from this union, all created in the image of our Creator. Nothing has changed in the method to birth the human race. Only mankind has disrupted God’s plan created for our best.
From the creation of Adam and Eve, God gave us the gift of decision making. He gave Adam the choice of naming all the animals. He gave both of them the choice to relate to Him. Later, we learn that Adam and Eve were presented with the most important decision of all—to obey God or not. Their relationship with God was at risk but they didn’t take time to consider the consequences of their decision.
Adam and Eve were too distracted and craftily deceived as Satan manipulated their thinking with the temptation to “be as wise as God”. A new feeling, not felt before in their relationship with God, was shame and humiliation. Shame was birthed from their disobedience to God. They no longer saw themselves as God saw them; holy and pure, made in His own image. The prince of darkness, the Deceiver lied to them in ways that made them feel they could as wise as God, with superiority equal to God—their Creator! He uses the same old, tired tricks today! It’s all he has. Evil’s powers are limited. God’s power is not.
The result of listening and falling for the lies of the Destroyer is a broken relationship with God. The Fall of Humanity began with the decision to disobey God. Since the Fall, many people have sought reconciliation with God through repentance of their sins. Others seek validation for their disobedience of God by rationalizing their sins as “the devil made me do it,” or “everyone’s doing it”. Others tend to rank their sins as being “not as bad as this guy or that guy.” Jesus addressed these thoughts in His story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. (See Luke 18:9-14)
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” —Paul, proclaiming The Salvation Plan of God to all who would believe. Romans 3:23-24
Why did Adam and Eve fall for the lie? (Read Genesis 3 for the whole story!) God wanted and gave His best to them. God desired to have this a loving, perfectly beautiful relationship with them. God enjoyed walking with Adam and Eve in the “cool of the evening” each day in the garden. God created a perfect home for Adam and Eve before He created them. Then God placed them in His perfectly created, beautifully growing garden of provision, made for the pleasure and sustenance. He only had one command of them. “Don’t eat of this tree—the tree of Life”.
God’s enemy, the fallen angel who wanted to be God and take over and was kicked out of heaven decided he would go after what God had created, loved and was precious to God—Adam and Eve. We can imagine evil disguising himself as a serpent, slinking and crawling into the forbidden tree, and then beckoning them to come and take a bite of the fruit. “Seriously Eve, it’s a talking serpent! Adam, don’t fall for what he is saying!”, we want to say. But we read on as the deceptive serpent tempted Eve first, convincing her that eating the fruit would make both of them be as wise like God. Notice that evil is using the same tactics that got him kicked out of heaven!
God’s only recourse for Adam and Eve’s disobedience was to kick them out of the Garden of Eden—The perfect place created by our Perfect God who loves us with His perfect love. The consequences of their decision to buy the lies of Satan, the Deceiver and Destroyer of all relationships, has severed the relationship God wanted to have with His created.
Adam and Eve hit rock bottom before enjoying the fullness of their relationship with God in the place He had created for them to enjoy. “You had one job—to avoid the tree of life like God ordered,” we might shout to Adam and Eve, until we too are tempted with distractions and fall for the insane lies of evil because of the seeds of arrogance that lie within us! We might question, (I did when I was much younger), why did God give them a choice, (free will)? Doesn’t He know we will fail and fall?
Hold that thought…
Psalm 130, The Message
A song of ascents.
1-2 Help, God—I’ve hit rock bottom! Master, hear my cry for help! Listen hard! Open your ears! Listen to my cries for mercy.
3-4 If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings, who would stand a chance? As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that’s why you’re worshiped.
5-6 I pray to God—my life a prayer— and wait for what he’ll say and do. My life’s on the line before God, my Lord, waiting and watching till morning, waiting and watching till morning.
7-8 O Israel, wait and watch for God— with God’s arrival comes love, with God’s arrival comes generous redemption. No doubt about it—he’ll redeem Israel, buy back Israel from captivity to sin.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Truth: God loves us and wants us to love Him back because of our own desire to be with Him in relationship. Our obedience to God is our measure of our love for God.
This isn’t really that hard to understand how God thinks concerning His love and care for us. Loving relationships are our main desire with our kids—from birth through adult. As parents, and later grandparents; we want our kids and grandkids, (anyone actually) to want to be with us as their choice. We do not want them to come from a feeling obligation—how awkward is that?
We desire the relationship with our beloved with the same desire God has for us. He wants to love us and demonstrates this love daily. God also wants us to to love Him back, telling us to imitate the love Jesus showed for all when He came to earth. This is real love that is not tainted by duty, manipulation, or commanded obligation—just pure love—the perfect love God has for each one of us. We want them to decide to love us because they know we love them deeply and forever!
John, the “beloved disciple” of Jesus explains the love of God this way;
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” 1 John 4:7-12
God’s love is a love that “covers a multitude of sins” and “keeps no record of sins” against each other. God’s love is intimate and forever. God’s love for us does not change and will never give up on us. His desire is for us to love like Him! God gave us the proof of His love: “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Psalm 130 is a lament by one who knows that even though he is a sinner, the Lord hears his cry out of the depths. The Psalmist proclaims in his prayer to God, “As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that’s why you’re worshiped.”The Psalmist was so right!
God loved us so much that He also created a Buy Back Plan, from the beginning of creation, to rescue us from the Enemy we fall for and decide to follow instead of God. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost; then became the One who paid the price for our redemption from sin. He is the One God chose to give His life for ours. Jesus willingly obeyed God with broken relationships with God on His mind.
The cost to pay for sins of the world was the cost of a life who was sinless. Jesus knew the price that had to paid to “buy us back” from the master we chose to foolishly follow. Jesus, our Redeemer said yes to bearing the beatings while enduring the humiliation and mocking. Jesus silently listened to the false accusations brought up against Him. With prayerful resolve, He then carried the cross He would nailed upon while the weight of the sins of the world bought him to his knees. A person was ordered to carry the cross to the place meant too shame Jesus in the most public place for all passersby to see Him suffer and die—as a criminal. He could have called ten thousand angels to rescue Him—but He did not. Buying us back by taking the punishment we deserved to pay the sin debt so we could reconcile with God in relationship was too important—a matter of life in eternity with us!
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believesin him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17
It is Jesus, alone, who sets us free to have a wonderful, relentlessly loving relationship with God! Sins gone “as far as the east is from the west”. Sins erased “to be remembered no more”. We are free to love God back without anything or anyone standing between us and our God.
Simply stated: We sin. God made a Way we can return to a loving relationship with Him through Jesus. But it is still our choice to accept the gift of God, repent and be saved by the blood of the Lamb. There is no one like our God!
What kind of love is this? I’m still trying to understand the depth and fullness of God’s love for us; but I choose to love Him back because He first loved me. I accept His gift of salvation and believe in the love He has for me. I pray that others will know Him through these writings. I will proclaim this love as long as I have breath on earth! To God be the glory, honor, and praise! I love you, Lord, with all my heart, all my mind, and all my soul. Continue to teach me to love like you love me.
If we truly believe what God says to be really real then I wonder why we cower when we are mocked for faith living and made to feel “less than” by the arrogant? If we believe that God is the Supreme Judge over all His creation and Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords, assigned by God to this position after returning to heaven as the Redeemer of our souls, then truly “Whom then shall we fear?”
We remember now what David wrote in a previous psalm of praise to God;
The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.
4 One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Psalm 27:1-5
What David sought; God provided to all of us through Jesus, Our Deliverer!
We are joint heirs with Jesus when we say yes to Him in surrender. God’s justice was done at the cross, depriving evil of its bonded hold on us, with deliverance from our sins by His Son, Jesus! The more we read and believe; the more we realize that God’s justice is for all who believe, repent, and live for Jesus. (John 3:16-17) What God desires for us, the prophet Amos declared; “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” The people of Amos’ day had no reverence or regard for God. Their offerings and sacrifices were given from hearts far from God as they continued in their sins of idolatry worship with insane, wild parties. It did not go well with them then and sin does not go well with us now. Sin cannot be a part of a human created by God “in His own image”. Sin doesn’t fit.
That’s why God’s justice is so powerful, like a mighty river, that rolls over the enemy’s obstacles likened to a giant river that powerfully rolls over the rocks and ridges underneath as if they were pebbles and sand. God’s justice cleanses humbled, repentant hearts completely, by washing away all our sins “just as if” they never occurred. Wow! “This is how Israel tells it—
Psalm 129, The Message
A song of ascents.
1-4 “They’ve kicked me around ever since I was young” —this is how Israel tells it— “They’ve kicked me around ever since I was young, but they never could keep me down. Their plowmen plowed long furrows up and down my back; But God wouldn’t put up with it, he sticks with us. Then God ripped the harnesses of the evil plowmen to shreds.”
5-8 Oh, let all those who hate Zion grovel in humiliation; Let them be like grass in shallow ground that withers before the harvest, Before the farmhands can gather it in, the harvesters get in the crop, Before the neighbors have a chance to call out, “Congratulations on your wonderful crop! We bless you in God’s name!”
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
What a mighty God we love and serve! What a gracious, loving, compassionate Judge we stand in in front of with a healthy fear and awe because of how powerful He is against the Enemy. We face skirmishes daily with the Evil one who continues to tempt the faithful with obstacles thrown in our walk with God. But we have the resurrection power of God who lives in us to overcome!
Here’s why, ICYMI! It is Almighty God who sent His Son from heaven to earth to seek the lost. His work from God was to redeem us by willingly and obediently lay down His life for ours, as a perfect without sin sacrifice to set us free from our sins. The Lamb of God became the ultimate, once and for all, Sacrifice for all the sins of the world. We need only to repent to be saved and set free!
From the cross to the grave, Jesus paid it all but there was still more to come! God always finishes what He starts. On the Third Day of laying in death; God’s final blow to His Enemy was delivered when He resurrected Jesus from death to life!
After “kicking around the King of kings”, Jesus rose from the grave to greet His followers alive and well, scars and all! The women who went were shocked to see the grave empty and terrified of where they took the Body of their Lord. “He is not here, he has risen, just as He said…Remember…” (See Luke 24) Jesus first words to his devoted, beloved, when they saw Him alive and well, were, “Don’t be afraid, it’s Me; now, go and tell the others!” Justice had been served by the One and only Judge with all authority to make freedom happen—He delivered us! Because “God wouldn’t put up with it”, the ravages of sin and death, all the chains and harnesses of sin were broken at the cross!
The Psalmist recalls Israel’s long suffering. From the time Israel was enslaved in Egypt to their current circumstance; they have suffered much at the hands of hostile nations who oppose God. Yet their enemies have not succeeded in their efforts to destroy Israel; not do they hold God’s people permanently in bondage.
God watches over Israel and is faithful even when most are not faithful to Him. The Enemy “withers like grass that sprouts on the flat, sunbaked housetops and “where no plow can prepare a nurturing soil to sustain the young shoots”—so there is no harvest. These curses are not retaliation for a personal slight but rather a desire for judgment against God’s enemies.
Our response?We should acknowledge the true injustice in the world and long for God’s redeeming and redemptive work to overturn and overcome it all! Trust God who is The Judge who will make it happen in ways we cannot now dream or imagine. But He will. Trust Him.
And all God’s people said, “I trust you, Jesus.”
Lord,
You have given us insight by Your Holy Spirit that beckons us to go deeper in our knowledge and faith in You no matter what is happening around us. You have certainly no given up your authority to the limited powers of evil. I believe. I’m listening for you. The One Thing that I seek is all of you dwelling in all of me. Cleanse me, renew my mind, refresh my soul, and restore the joy and peace of your salvation at work within me knowing you are at work in all others as well. To you be all glory, honor, and praise!
What if we poured ALL our entire being into a focused, concentrated effort to deeply trust in God, our Savior, the One who is able and never fails in His promises, especially in the promise to be with us ALWAYS!
What if our trust went so deep, beyond the surface, that we change the way we think about God. What if our trust grew to fully possessing that blessed assurance that we sing of at church when we worship together? What if our commitment to trust Jesus became a habit to solidified our foundation of faith, trust, and dependance on God for all things that bless and challenge us? What if our trust is birthed is habits of gratitude and praise for God, the One who nothing is impossible to accomplish, the One and Only who truly loves us so much He sent His Son to die for our sins while we were yet sinners? What if we completely believe that God really loves and desires to be in all details of our lives! Let’s pause to praise with full trust in God who created us in His own image and knew us before we were born! Let us take in what God wants us to know…
“If each of My children would seekto please Me above all else, fear of others’ judgements would vanish, as would attempts to impress others. Focus your attention on the path just ahead of you and on the One who never leaves your side.” –Jesus Calling by Sarah Young (Scripture references: Psalm 23:4, Matthew 7:1-2, Proverbs 29:25)
Pause to praise—
Psalm 128, The Message
A song of ascents.
1-2 All you who fear God, how blessed you are! how happily you walk on his smooth straight road! You worked hard and deserve all you’ve got coming. Enjoy the blessing! Soak in the goodness!
3-4 Your wife will bear children as a vine bears grapes, your household lush as a vineyard, The children around your table as fresh and promising as young olive shoots. Stand in awe of God’s Yes. Oh, how he blesses the one who fears God!
5-6 Enjoy the good life in Jerusalem every day of your life. And enjoy your grandchildren. Peace to Israel!
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Trust God;He knows what He is doing!
“‘Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His promise, and to know, ‘thus saith the Lord.’”
Pause to thank God for His blessings—
“Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him! How I’ve proved him o’er and o’er! Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust him more!”
(‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus, Composed by Louisa Stead, 1882)
Lord,
Oh, how you have blessed me this morning by Your Word of Truth and by Your Holy Spirt who led me to Truth. I love you, Lord, with ALL my heart, ALL my mind, and ALL my soul. I’ll be looking for your acts of greatness all day long and give you praise as you walk before, beside, and behind me, surrounding my whole being, from the inside out and outside in, with your blessed assurance! Lead me, Lord. You have all my trust!
It is a wise person, like Solomon, who knows God and recognizes all the gifts He gives! It is an even wiser, humbled believer who stops to proclaim what God has given to us for our good and to declare His glory as a testimony of praise so others will know God, too! A thankful, wise leader leads people in the ways of God for if God is not present, worshiped, praised, and thanked we slander the very promises of God to be with us always with power to rescue us from harm.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”—Jesus, Matthew 7:24-27
Psalm 127, The Message
A song of ascents. Of Solomon.
1-2 If God doesn’t build the house, the builders only build shacks. If God doesn’t guard the city, the night watchman might as well nap. It’s useless to rise early and go to bed late, and work your worried fingers to the bone. Don’t you know he enjoys giving rest to those he loves?
3-5 Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift? the fruit of the womb his generous legacy? Like a warrior’s fistful of arrows are the children of a vigorous youth. Oh, how blessed are you parents, with your quivers full of children! Your enemies don’t stand a chance against you; you’ll sweep them right off your doorstep.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
We want to be wise. No one wakes up one day and says, “I think I want to be a fool and do things that will harm me or worse yet, my family.” Who doesn’t want to have the skills for living that keeps us walking on solid ground with Jesus? No one. Mostly no one.
It is also not our first choice or inner desire to be a fool who follows a foolish storyline of “this will be so good for you” or “you can be in control and have it your way” by cunning, manipulative people in and out of the church, but it happens. We all fall for it from times to time—especially when we are weak and have not called on God’s strength in surrender to His will. With me, I want to think the best of people and assume they are telling me the truth until they don’t. Trust God, He knows what He is doing.
The Good News is that when we fail and make a mess, and we all do—God shows up to flood our souls with His faithfulness, unconditional love along with His merciful kindness. That’s who God is and what He does. I need God in all of my life—all I am, all I think and in all I do. God must be in it! He is our firm foundation!
We can feel so very foolish when we give permission to anyone else but Jesus to tell us how to live our lives because it is those very people who think they can make our lives better, easier, more fulfilling. The Enemy’s goal of destruction and deception is to build within us his traits of envy, jealousy, and pride that he knows erodes our faith in shifting sands of thinking and living. We build a life in vain when our foundation is not God.
When God is not in it, proclaims Solomon, life is full of useless activities of mere survival in “shacks” on the sand where we hide and cower in fear of the Enemy’s attacks on our hearts, minds, and souls. Our fear, most likely, is passed on to our children unless we stop and invite God to be in all the details of our lives as the foundation upon which we build our lives. Only by the blood of Jesus’ sacrifice can we break the cycle of worries, doubts, fears, anxieties, and self-loathing that afflict our beings which lead us to live the life of a fool with “no leg to stand on”—only shifting sand beneath our feet.
When God is in it—He watches over us the tireless watchman who never slumbers not sleeps! Remember Psalm 121 that we read and studied a few days ago? Let’s revisit and refresh our thoughts with thanksgiving to God;
“I look up to the mountains; does my strength come from mountains? No, my strength comes from God, who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.
He won’t let you stumble, your Guardian God won’t fall asleep. Not on your life! Israel’s Guardian will never doze or sleep.
God’s your Guardian, right at your side to protect you— Shielding you from sunstroke, sheltering you from moonstroke.
God guards you from every evil, he guards your very life. He guards you when you leave and when you return, he guards you now, he guards you always.” Psalm 121, MSG
Wow, what choose anyone but God? There is NO ONE like our God!
Lord,
Thank you for all your promises fulfilled with more blessings besides! Thank you for watching over us with love, care, and faithfulness unknown to man. Thank you for cleansing our hearts, renewing our minds, refreshing our souls with your fresh new mercies for today that covers our messes of yesterday. Thank you for restoring the joy of your salvation at work within us. Lead me, Lord, for you are my firm foundation upon with I stand and proclaim your Truth.
There are times in our lives when what God does something beyond what we can only dream. There are those holy moments when God shows us and does something so great for us, in and through us, that causes us to immediately bow in humbled worship before Him. We try to muster human, but lacking, words of thanksgiving to Him when God works His miracles right before our eyes.
Miracles of God prompt the responses of praise, dancing with joy, with smiles on our faces that cannot be erased, a kind of praise that flows from a rescued, saved, uplifted heart, mind, and soul by our God who created us “in His own image”. Our response is almost involuntary as we erupt in spontaneous praise! It happens when we realize immediately that God was in it, working on our behalf all along, even when we did not see or feel Him working! We held out hope that God was working behind the scenes and in the hearts of those who love Him back; but honestly our resolve was tested and frail before He did. God knows our hearts and our weaknesses and provides all the strength we need to overcome in all the overwhelming circumstances of daily living on earth.
Even those who do not know Him completely or follow Him committedly are abruptly stopped with awe of God when He does what He does best—save us. “It seemed like a dream, too good to be true,” the Psalmist begins…
Psalm 126, The Message
A song of ascents.
1-3 It seemed like a dream, too good to be true, when God returned Zion’s exiles. We laughed, we sang, we couldn’t believe our good fortune. We were the talk of the nations— “God was wonderful to them!” God was wonderful to us; we are one happy people.
4-6 And now, God, do it again— bring rains to our drought-stricken lives So those who planted their crops in despair will shout “Yes!” at the harvest, So those who went off with heavy hearts will come home laughing, with armloads of blessing.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Let us count the ways that God has blessed us throughout our lives! But wait! Is that even possible? I don’t think we realize all that God does on our behalf—daily, hourly, weekly, yearly, as He molds and shapes us to be all He created us to be while protecting us from the Enemy! We can only dream of all the ways God is so good to us, providing for us, before we know we need protecting! We can only dream of what lies ahead for those whose hearts are fully committed to Him through Jesus Christ, His Son who saved and set us free to love like He loves us! We can only dream of what it will be like to praise Him in heaven for eternity!
We can only dream of how a pressing issue in your life and in mine will be resolved by a God who knows exactly who we are with what and who we need most—Him! Trust God from whom all blessings flow!
We can only dream about what the Psalmist proposes—all nations bowing before our One and Only God with glorious praise, humble words of thanksgiving with honor and reverence for the One who rescues and loves us unconditionally. Wow! ALL!
“So those who went off with heavy hearts will come home laughing, with armloads of blessing.”
Yes, we can only dream of the day when Jesus comes back for His final act of gathering all who believe in Him with resolve to follow Him to the home He has prepared for each one of us. “What a glorious Day that will be…”
There is coming a day When no heartaches shall come, No more clouds in the sky, No more tears to dim the eye; All is peace forevermore On that happy golden shore, What a day, glorious day that will be.
What a day that will be, When my Jesus I shall see, When I look upon His face, The One who saved me by His grace; Then He’ll take me by the hand, And lead me through the Promised Land, Oh, what a day, glorious day that will be.
There’ll be no sorrow there, No more burdens to bear, No more sickness, no pain, No more parting over there; And forever I will be With the One who died for me, Oh, what a day, glorious day that will be.
(Written and composed by Jim Hill in 1955, the hymn reflects a personal testimony of hope rooted in the promises of Scripture. Drawing directly from Revelation 21:4, which speaks of a time when God shall wipe away all tears and there shall be no more death, sorrow, crying, or pain, the song paints a vivid picture of the glory awaiting the redeemed.)
We can only dream of this day and all those days to come with Jesus in our hearts, Holy Spirit guiding our thoughts, and God putting big smiles on our faces as He acts on our behalf on earth.
“Now to himwho is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”—Paul, Ephesians 3:20-21, NIV
Lord,
I love you with all my heart, mind, and soul. I love how you work in our lives with lessons that teach us what we need to know. I love the peace you give that drives away fear and worries. I love the blessed assurance you provide daily along with your wisdom and strength to walk through the tough stuff of life here. I love how Your Holy Spirit leads us to the Truth we seek. We are blessed beyond our wildest dreams and imaginations by You. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
We can keep trying to do life on our own power, with our own thinking, our own limited efforts of problem solving. We can even resort to charismatically manipulating others to make life work smoothly for us—from our limited viewpoint. OR we can look up to God in all the details, lean not to our own understanding from where we stand and ask God for wisdom. We can also ask for His power to do what He says from HIS vantage point of eternity. Let us pause for a minute or two. Look around and behind with a hard look inside our hearts to see where we truly are standing.
Listen to the Psalmist’s words; God rescued the Israelites from their enemies over and over again. Although the odds were against God’s people, God was there to guide them from where they were to where He is and saved them from themselves and their enemies. God is doing the same for us again and again!
God is all powerful, created the whole entire universe, is mighty to save, and loves those whose hearts are completely His. (2 Chronicles 16:9) Does He know whose hearts are His? Yes, He does! He loves everyone and his desire is that no one perish but that everyone would turn to Him for help daily, praying for His guidance. God answers with deliverance and a rescue that is eternal!
God also loves us so much He “parts the waters” that could overwhelm with a Way to walk through it all in amazing form! There is no one like our God! This is who our God was, is, and always will be—All-knowing God who created all and is in all! Why trust in anything or anyone else?I do not know. But sometimes we do trust in ourselves, our stuff, and others until we realize our efforts are in vain without the guidance of the One who knows the Perfect Way with the Perfect Plan.
God’s plans are never meant to harm us but to guide us to Him, the only one who knows the numbers of hairs on our heads! (Jeremiah 29:11) He knows us. He loves us unconditionally. He has a Plan to save us, set us free, with the precious gift that only He can give—eternal life! (John 3:16-17) Who do you trust? (Take all the time you need to answer this question meant to help us; not condemn us.
Psalm 125, The Message
1-5 Those who trust in God are like Zion Mountain: Nothing can move it, a rock-solid mountain you can always depend on. Mountains encircle Jerusalem, and God encircles his people— always has and always will. The fist of the wicked will never violate What is due the righteous, provoking wrongful violence. Be good to your good people, God, to those whose hearts are right! God will round up the backsliders, corral them with the incorrigibles. Peace over Israel!
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
“The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him a habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” Exodus 15:2 (From Moses’ song of victory after crossing the Red Sea).
God is our strength and our song! It does not matter how physically, mentally, emotionally, or even spiritually fit we are—God has strength above all we can muster with a love beyond all understanding! God loves to give us all the strength we need, especially in our weakness to accomplish His plan for our good and His glory! Our surrender to walk humbly with Him is the response He is looking for from us.
We should not seek strength in weapons, economic might, or political strength. Real power with unlimited strength comes from God!
So, who do you trust now?
Lord,
“Let the morning bring word of your unfailing love for all my trust is in you.” (Psalm 143 excerpt as my prayer to you.) Thank you, thank you, thank you for your unfailing love and forever faithfulness to us!
I don’t know about you but I pray often for God to be in all the details of our lives on earth as it is in heaven. I am happy, ecstatic to report that God is doing it again. I got word last night that my Amazon Prime account had been hacked by someone who changed my email and preceded to change my phone number and place an order! I rose early this morning to begin calling Amazon customer service. Three phone numbers later, I got to the person who easily put my account back in control. Of course, I change my password immediately to something much stronger. The hacker tried to be me, place an order, but failed. The bank refused the purchase. Amazon locked down the account before I called. The customer service representative said I was lucky. No, God was in this, working on our behalf! He also led me to the right people at the right time to correct the situation and make the account more secure.
Another problem was solved this morning in the same hour! Our security lights went out for some unknown reason. Because this house is new to us, we couldn’t find the light switch to these particular lights in the garage. The neighbor came over with a tester to see if the power was getting to the sockets. Yes, power was there. He told me where his switch was located but it was not where ours was. Then, I looked up at the ceiling fan that had two wall switches. We thought bought were for the fan and had turned one off! The one we turned off was for the garage lights. No need to buy new special light sensitive bulbs, no need for an electrician, just turn on the right switch!
I believe God works on our behalf daily in all the details of our lives when we ask Him and remember to thank Him when He does! AND I think He has fun doing it! I love putting a
“The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Psalm 37:23, NLT
“Surely I am with you always, even unto the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20
“For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” Zephania 3:17
The Psalmist is leading God’s People in worship with thanksgiving! He opens with this thought— “If God hadn’t been for us…” Yikes! We wouldn’t have a chance against the evil of this world!
Psalm 124, The Message
A song of ascents. Of David.
1-5 If God hadn’t been for us —all together now, Israel, sing out! — If God hadn’t been for us when everyone went against us, We would have been swallowed alive by their violent anger, Swept away by the flood of rage, drowned in the torrent; We would have lost our lives in the wild, raging water.
6 Oh, blessed be God! He didn’t go off and leave us. He didn’t abandon us defenseless, helpless as a rabbit in a pack of snarling dogs.
7 We’ve flown free from their fangs, free of their traps, free as a bird. Their grip is broken; we’re free as a bird in flight.
8 God’s strong name is our help, the same God who made heaven and earth.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Warren Wierbe gives something to consider for verses 7-8;
“The picture is that of a helpless bird who heedlessly walked into the trap in order to eat the food. Satan always has fascinating bait to offer. The Lord may allow us to fall into a trap, but nobody can keep us there when He wants us to be free. The Lord not only opened the trap but broke it so it cannot be used again! The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ has broken the dominion of sin and death, and we can walk in freedom through Jesus Christ.”—Wiersbe Study Bible
God’s strong name is our help!
Jesus is our Redeeming Savior!
God’s Holy Spirit is our guide to all that is Truth!
Believe then, through good times and challenging times on earth that all who believe can rest in that blessed assurance that “God is for us; not against us.” His timing and His ways are always perfect. Trust Him. Even if, He does not act when we want Him to act or fix our problems our way; He’s still working behalf perfectly for those who hearts are completely His. What a blessing God is! There is no one like our God! He leads; we follow.
Paul’s inspired words reassure us!
“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these?If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love?Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Paul to the church then and now. Romans 8:31-38
Lord,
How encouraging you are to us in every way! Thank you for being all the details of our lives—from small to large—that strengthens and promotes the growth of our faith in you. Thank you for being with me, leading me, step by step in all the details of life. Thank you for saving my soul, making me whole, and teaching me by your wisdom, especially in tests and trials that perplex me. Increase your wisdom in me as I surrender to your will.
It’s just good dramedy when the villain looks over his shoulder once more to pour out arrogant words of hate with “I got you!” only to step off a cliff or fall over an obstacle in their way. They fell because all their thoughts and focus was on making someone else miserable. “You reap what you sow” comes to mind. Paul writes truth to the infant believing church then and is applicable to the church now;
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:7-9
God knows our hearts. Jesus who is part of God knows hearts and sees what our hearts are holding onto as well as sending out. Pure hearts sincerely love God and love others without conditions. Pure hearts do not require proof of worth by others to love—they just love them as humans, like themselves, created by God in His own image. Our identity is in Jesus, we belong to God because of the redemption Jesus provided for us!
Heart Proof—Remember the time when the Pharisees came to Jesus with hearts bent on religious tradition more than their focus on God’s heart? They came to Jesus, as they did often in attempts to discredit Him in front of the crowds who hung on every word He said to ask, “Um, why don’t your disciples wash their hands before they eat?” The question seemed simple but it was loaded with contempt for Jesus. Handwashing was not an act cleanliness, only a ceremonial show of tradition by priests. Jesus knew their hearts and responded with more than they asked for as it was also an opportunity to preach Truth to the crowd! Jesus’ words of truth profoundly pointed out the difference between religious tradition given by God and relationship with God. The Great Physician was listening to the Pharisees words while tuning in to heal the condition of their hearts. They had twisted God’s Law while adding to God’s Law without His permission to the point they no longer knew God.
“And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’
Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?” Matthew 15
Jesus is Truth who tells the Truth so hearts will know Truth and turn to God! God will not refuse forgiveness with love, mercy, and grace to a humbled heart who seeks Him. Jesus was sent to seek and to save the lost. Most of the religious leaders were lost.
The disciples asked Jesus for an explanation of this teaching because previously all they knew was what the religious leaders said. Jesus responds; “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”—Jesus, Matthew 15:17-20
This is why, unlike what the world thinks, we do not follow our hearts! Our hearts can deceive us, Jesus tells us. We follow the guidance of God’s Holy Spirit who Jesus promised would lead us always to Truth. Our discernment between what is good and what is evil comes from His Spirit who lives in us! Therefore, we seek the heart of God for He will never fail to deliver and demonstrate Truth.
We also find hope and strength when we lift our eyes to the God of mercy rather than focusing on our troubles or overthinking about the future. Our hope is in Jesus; God’s gift of eternal life to all who believe! The Psalmist teaches us that pure hearts no only look up to God for help; hearts seeking the heart of God are focused on His commands, ready to trust and obey what He says to be and do. We sing, “It is well with our souls” when our hearts are in harmony with God’s heart!
Our growing love for God increases our desire to serve Him! There are many physical examples of what it is like to be a servant in the King’s court. Watch the movies of kings and queens who have servants standing in readiness nearby, with eyes fixed on their master’s. They move immediately at His command or the wave of his hand.
This is the alertness to God that the Psalmist is speaking. We too are servants of our God Most High, eager to do His will, because our hearts are tuned to His. If they are not, we fall to what the world says to be and do, led by the prince of his world who is evil. Have mercy on our jaded, spoiled, unhealthy hearts, Lord.
Psalm 123, The Message
A song of ascents.
1-4 I look to you, heaven-dwelling God, look up to you for help. Like servants, alert to their master’s commands, like a maiden attending her lady, We’re watching and waiting, holding our breath, awaiting your word of mercy. Mercy, God, mercy! We’ve been kicked around long enough, Kicked in the teeth by complacent rich men, kicked when we’re down by arrogant brutes.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
When feeling unloved, discouraged by troubles, or unworthy—don’t be a brute, for that will only compound the unhealthy condition of our hearts. “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the Light of His glory and grace.” This chorus lifts me up when I am confused or troubled by circumstances. My prayer for mercy is simply, “I trust you, Jesus” which assures my heart and renews my thinking of to whom I belong! It is a verbal proclamation of trust said out loud even in a silent room alone with God.
When life gets hard, where is your gaze? Take a few moments right now to gaze upon our Savior. Let us ask him for mercy. Then we will begin to feel His unconditional love with heaping amounts of unending grace wash over us. Remember that it is God who will do the heavy lifting in our lives for He is strong, wise, unfailing, never quits, and powerfully capable. Allow God to realign our hearts, renew our minds, and infuse our souls with His hope and strength.
To God be the glory, honor, and praise! Great is His faithfulness!
“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”—Jesus, Matthew 18:20
The verse above was quoted more often than I can count in my growing up years as a “lifer” in the church—but out of context, most times. It was said often by our discouraged pastor or song leader who looked over the “faithful few” who would gather Sunday night or on Wednesday Bible Study. We called them the committed and devoted. The larger group of somewhat committed attenders came on Sunday morning to Sunday School and church. “Fringe People” skipped Sunday School and only came for church. With later generations, we saw the fringe skippers only come Christmas and Easter. But still we would hear, “where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” as an encouragement to those who came.
When we go to Matthew 18 to read the whole chapter and verse of Jesus’ teachings, we learn more. He is talking to the religious leaders as well as His devoted disciples who are following and listening to Him. These are examples of how Jesus addresses these topics with instructions:
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” (My response would be, “are you serious right now James and John?”) But Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” He is calling His church of followers to be childlike in faith; but not childish in relationships.
“Woe to those who cause anyone to trip and stumble in their faith.” In Jesus time on earth, He noticed all the debating, criticizing, and heated arguments over The Law of God. Jesus, who is The Way to Truth with the Gift of Eternal life from God, explained; “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble!”—Jesus. We cannot be the ones who quarrel over religion without having a loving, growing relationship with Jesus who commands us to love God and love each other. We cause others to wonder then stumble over why we argue in the church over things of this world that do not bring us closer to God and each other. I was asked once, by a new believer, “are you guys in a competition, or what?” Mm, ouch.
“What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? –Jesus. I can’t count how many times an elder in the church would answer this question with, “they know we are here, they’ll come when they want.” (No, most likely they won’t because they might not be sure if you care, but okay.) Jesus adds, “And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.”
Jesus didn’t stop there; He also dealt with sin inside the church in this way. “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”—Jesus
All that Jesus taught came from the love of God in Him with the Spirit of God guiding Him as Truth. We approach church discipline as it is called, with much prayer, asking for God’s wisdom, with the attitude of Jesus, with a desire to be like Him who put His own interests aside. (Philippians 2) Paul emphasizes how to be childlike in faith versus childish in behavior with;
“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” Ephesians 4:15
Notice that we are to keep the matter private. Approach the person who sinned and speak with him or her alone. It is possible that the person does not even realize what he or she has done. Or, even if the act was deliberate, our own attitude of submission and love will help the person repent and apologize. Above all else, we should approach the person with the idea of winning our brother or sister, not winning an argument. We don’t want to win the argument and lose the person.
“Where two or three are gathered” means more than we thought— It’s not about the numbers of people gathered but about the way we relate to each other no matter the number of those present! It’s about the discipline of being like Christ who is the Head of the Church.
The local church, however, should be at its best spiritually before seeking to discipline a member. When disciplining a member, a church is actually examining and disciplining itself as the Body of Christ! This is why our Lord added these words about authority, prayer, and fellowship. We cannot discipline others if we ourselves are not disciplined. Whatever we permit in the church must first have been permitted by God. Arguing with hateful words and demeaning of each other’s character to get our own way on any matter is not of God or permitted by God.
Jesus brought us the gospel of peace to a world in need of a Savior. Jesus taught us how to live in peace as well as how to seek God first in all of life, then speak His Words by His Spirit living in us—just as He did as our perfect example. (Read the gospels plus Philippians 2) Jesus argued to win the religious leaders over to be back in relationship with their God. Some did come over to His way of Kingdom thinking, most did not. But the bottom line is this—Jesus did and said what God, His Father told Him. We are to do likewise.
Hang in there, I am going back to bring us forward. The above explanation in the first paragraph describes what it was like for me growing up in church of about 100 people on any given Sunday in the “Bible Belt” region of the country. There were many smaller churches that dotted the landscape with only one or two “mega” churches in our region.
Our church people on the inside were “family friendly and welcoming” to all who came. My grandma who never read a “First Impressions” book or went to workshop on welcoming first-time visitors, naturally and lovingly did all “the things”—even asking first time or returning visitors if they had plans for lunch. If they consented, and grandma was very persuasive, she would bring them home to their farm table filled with fried chicken, homemade hot rolls, and all the sides she had made early that morning before arriving at church! Grandpa and Grandma hosted not only their immediate family of two daughters, their spouses, with 5 kids between them every Sunday for lunch; but also brought in strangers who were welcomed as “family”. THIS was our lifestyle. This is what I grew up knowing. Her daughters, me, my daughters and now my granddaughters became generations of hosts with home-cooking or at least take out!
I have written Daily Manna for quite a few years now and I have most times been led to share the good times of growing up in my home church as it relates the God’s Word today. But, I feel led to talk about what many do not—the darker sides of smaller churches. However, I have discovered so of the same unhealth that hinders the health of new believers in much larger churches that have worked as a leader. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” …Romans 3:23
I preface some of these memories with caution to the reader with a Spirit of Love. I loved my upbringing because I loved God from early childhood. That love for God came from parents and grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and other mentors who loved God with all their hearts, minds, and souls. I loved going to church from nursery through young adulthood to marriage, and having my own family. I still love meeting others who love God and submit to Christ as the Head of the church! So, as the David begins, “let us go the house of God,” my heart agrees wholeheartedly and I also leap for joy!
Jerusalem was built for worship of the One and Only True God. It was designed for all nations to come His house of prayer and worship. “This”, writes David is what it means to be Israel—God’s People. THIS was David’s lifestyle.
Centuries later, Jesus will passionately preach how to be the church of brothers and sisters who love and relate to each other in peace—Jesus’ peace—the peace that the world cannot give, the peace that “passes all understanding” for it brings calm assurance when troubles come, accusations fly, and there seems to be no resolution. Only the Prince of Peace, who is not of this world, can give the peace we need. The beauty of the peace of Jesus is that His peace lives in all who surrender to Him as Lord of their lives. Is His Peace our lifestyle?
Let’s read this psalm prayerfully…
Psalm 122, The Message
A song of ascents. Of David.
1-2 When they said, “Let’s go to the house of God,” my heart leaped for joy. And now we’re here, O Jerusalem, inside Jerusalem’s walls!
3-5 Jerusalem, well-built city, built as a place for worship! The city to which the tribes ascend, all God’s tribes go up to worship, To give thanks to the name of God— this is what it means to be Israel. Thrones for righteous judgment are set there, famous David-thrones.
6-9 Pray for Jerusalem’s peace! Prosperity to all you Jerusalem-lovers! Friendly insiders, get along! Hostile outsiders, keep your distance! For the sake of my family and friends, I say it again: live in peace! For the sake of the house of our God, God, I’ll do my very best for you.
WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?
Verses 6-9 is a passionate plea for peace from David to all who would listen!“Pray for Jerusalem!” We’re still praying for Jerusalem! We ask “why can’t they get along” without looking inside ourselves when we disagree in churches across our country, causing endless skirmishes that have been going on as long as I have lived—and not lovingly disagreeing but some moments escalate into hateful wars over…choosing carpet color, eating in a fellowship building attached to the sanctuary or not, parking lot use between services times, the singing of hymns verses “camp choruses”, not to mention “rock music of gospel with guitars, drums or no drums came later. In 2020, I was ashamed of many of us of the church who argued about the government mandate during the Covid crisis. Whoa, church, are you hearing what you are saying so empathically and hatefully? I prayed for peace. I was a church leader at the time and heard it all. Oh Lord, we were tested and failed, didn’t we?
During my lifetime, it was mostly the small things in doing church that caused church people (the faithful few) to go to war. It really hurt to see the warring use Scripture as their weapons to fight for their point of view. What hurts the most though, are the casualties of war all because we lost our identity in Christ and therefore failed at being the church to those in need of a Savior.
Those Sunday dinners, I talked about earlier sometimes ended in packing up early on Sunday afternoons when raised voices of disagreements over church stuff became ugly. Fortunately, it was after the “visitors” left. But, coming in from play with my cousins, I readily saw the disheartened look on my grandparents faces with tears in their eyes, and I vowed not to be this way. What does God think? I wondered. I prayed for peace in my young heart. I still pray for peace. God answers prayers of peace and most times the ones most disagreeable settled to love instead—until the next argument. But the scars remained as a reminder to me to seek peace in Jesus. He knows and He cares. Later in life, as a wife, mother, teacher, church leader, pastor’s wife, youth leader, and janitor of the church; I learned that there is no disagreement or “right” that is worth losing the peace of Christ in my heart.
Pray for peace—Live with the Peace of Christ within! Our King of kings and Lord of lords is the Prince of Peace. There will be THAT DAY when all will bow and worship Jesus in peace. On that day, all nations will be at peace from the Enemy as he will be deleted forever from God’s Plan of Salvation for all who believe and endure in faith. God will prevail. He always has and always will. Trust Him.
Lord,
This was a hard place in my memories to revisit but once more healing in your way. Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, refresh our souls, restore the joy of your salvation at work within us and give us your peace in our hearts. I love you with all my heart, mind, and soul. I love your church filled with people who believe and want to tell others of you. Help us all to love like you love us.
I am a list maker…even in retirement from my secular work. For me, what doesn’t get listed, doesn’t get done. It is also very rewarding for me to check that item off the list when it is accomplished. The list has a progression of priorities. One task cannot happen until another task is completed. And so life goes with my lists guiding my behavior and productivity.
LEADERSHIP PRINCIPLE #6: Keep a Close Check on Yourself
